The state of our rivers: EU-wide survey results

A Europe-wide survey of rivers and streams has tested water samples for a
range of polar organic pollutants. The study highlights the problems associated
with the persistence of industrial pollutants and monitoring emerging
pollutants.

The continual entry of organic pollutants derived from personal care
products, pharmaceuticals and industrial chemicals via wastewaters into rivers
and streams is a cause for concern. Little is known about the long-term,
potentially toxic effects of these increasingly complex mixtures of pollutants.
Water-soluble compounds can also contaminate ground and drinking waters.

The survey was conducted by collecting water from 122 sampling points from
over 100 bodies of water throughout Europe in autumn 2007, representing a range
of sizes, from small streams to large rivers. They were in varying states of
cleanliness, from unspoilt to contaminated. 27 European Countries, most of which
were EU Member States, were covered.

The research team, led by the European Commission's independent Joint
Research Centre (JRC), identified the concentrations of the target pollutants
and the number of times they were detected in rivers. Relatively speaking, the
most frequently detected compounds at noteworthy concentrations were
benzotriazole, tolytriazole (which are anti-rust substances), caffeine,
carbamazepine (a drug used for the treatment of epilepsy) and
nonylphenoxy-acetic acid, a degradation product of industrial surfactants used
in cleaning products. These agents are suspected to disrupt the reproductive
functions of humans and wildlife - known as so-called 'endocrine disrupting
compounds'. The study detected only low concentrations of pesticides. However,
the sampling was conducted in the autumn when few pesticides are used.

Rivers with the relatively highest amounts of perfluorinated acids (PFOS and
PFOA), were identified. These chemicals are major industrial pollutants and can
persist in the environment. They have been detected in human blood worldwide.
The study suggests that the Rivers Po in Italy, Danube, Scheldt in Belgium and
the Netherlands, Rhone in France and the Wyre in the UK contained significant
amounts of PFOA, although not all major European rivers were tested. PFOS was
found in similar amounts, but its emissions were more widely distributed
throughout Europe.

Overall, the cleanest water was sampled from areas with a low population
density. Only 10 per cent (11 of the 122 samples) of the samples contained
virtually no chemicals.

The study also highlights the need to anticipate environmental problems
stemming from the use of chemicals in Europe. In this context the new European
legislation REACH (Registration, Evaluation, Authorisation and
Restriction of Chemical substances), which requires companies to provide data on
the amounts of chemicals used and to perform environmental risk assessments,
will contribute also to the quantitative and qualitative understanding of water
pollution.